Zadar and Nin Croatia

Where’s the Tequila?

Yikes. I made it to Zadar, but the bus station is pretty far from my hostel. I didn’t get the chance to look up how to get there while I had wifi! After walking for almost a half hour, I finally make my way through these old stone entrances to old town and find my home for the next few days: Tequila Bar Hostel.

Yep, I chose this place for the name. It is honestly so cute and homey! The rooms are spacious, each bed has their own ledge attached to the side with a lamp, and there are multiple seats scattered around tables.

I am greeted by a bunch of outgoing hostelmates who are already starting their night. I shower and get ready to go see the sunset with my new friends.

Zadar is So Inviting

Zadar reminds me of Split and Dubrovnik, but it gives off a more authentic vibe and seems to have a lot more locals around. We walk out to the harbor and it is packed with people waiting to see the sun go down. Apparently, Zadar is known for some killer sunsets, which I was unaware of.

There is a summer festival going on with live music and booths with food. We drink while we dangle our legs off the edge of the promenade. The sunset is spectacular with bursts of pink and orange throughout the sky.

The atmosphere is so full of love and genuine happiness. I have never felt a stronger glow of warmth coming from such a huge group of strangers.

Zadar’s Sea Organ

As we walk further down the promenade, I start to hear the sound of music coming from the infamous sea organ. The wind from the waves is pushed up through holes cut in the side of the wall stretching seventy meters. There are steps where you can sit and listen and watch the waves crash. I could’ve stayed there, caught in a trance from watching the waves paired with the beautiful yet eerie sound of the organ.

In front of the sea organ lies a ginormous, light-up circle. During the day, this circle charges from the suns rays, and at night transforms into a solar-powered dance floor. The way the lights change corresponds to the sounds of the organ. There are so many kids dancing all over its surface.

A bunch of other smaller lights run along the promenade representing the planets in our solar system, with the giant circle representing our sun. Ok, cute!

Seize the Night

My hostelmates and I continue drinking in the streets throughout the night while we explore. The town is bustling! We find our way to 5 Wells Square, where there is some sort of private party going on. Across from it, we find an entrance up to Queen Jelena Madijevka Park.

The park is fairly small and perched up on a hilltop. It offers a decent view and overlooks some sort of outdoor club (the outdoor nightlife is incredible here). My Dutch friends try to teach me useless phrases in their language as we continue running around and exploring the town late into the night.

Did Someone Say Mud

The next morning, my hostelmate Alex invites me to go to Nin, where there are beautiful sandy beaches and this strange medicinal mud that people rub all over their bodies. I obviously need to check this out. We get a quick breakfast from a cafe next to the hostel and take a half hour bus to Nin.

We actually end up getting off a stop early to see what the town of Zaton had to offer. It wasn’t that great and I kind of wish we skipped it. We basically walked A LOT through very quiet, old streets until coming to the beach.

Magical Nin

We continue on to Nin by foot (about a mile and a half walk). I have no idea what to expect but when we finally get there I am in awe. Nin is on the water surrounded by gorgeous mountains, with dozens of people out parasailing and kite surfing on the water. The old town is about the quarter of a size of any of the others I had been to but for me, the main attraction was the view of the beautiful mountain scenery.

We leave old town and walk down the old harbor. It’s a hike (omg so much walking today), but we finally come to these boardwalks over a swampy marsh with pockets of water. I can’t get over the view.

We follow the boardwalks to a place where we see footprints and knew this was ‘the’ peloid mud. I’ve never heard of it before but apparently, this mud has medicinal healing powers. Back in the day, people would travel for miles to rub it all over their bodies to be ‘cured’! Sign me up twice! It smells so bad, but I cover myself in the black mud. People even put it in their hair, but yeah, wasn’t feelin’ that today.

Queens Beach

We walk further along the boards covered in our black muck until we get to sandy, Queens beach looking across the water to the mountains. Guys, I wish I could frame the view in my mind forever.

Here we bake in the sun until the mud hardens. We run into the water to rinse off and it takes a really long time. My skin feels softer but I’m not sure if it’s all in my head. After fully rinsing off, we head back to old town and walk around before catching a bus back to Zadar.

Bye Zadar!

I wake up the next morning ready to explore the rest of Zadar. The main square and promenade are so beautiful, and it’s nice to have some complete alone time walking around. I didn’t get the chance to climb up the bell tower, but I bet it has an incredible view of the city.

I say goodbye to the sea organ one last time before heading back to the hostel and making my way towards the bus station. Time to get in the zone for my next destination (which I have heard is party central): Novalja, Pag.

Lessons Learned:

• Zadar sunsets are incredible.
• Keep an open schedule. Don’t be afraid to go somewhere you hadn’t planned on. You never know—it could turn out to be an incredible experience.
• Dutch is an extremely complicated language.